TAMPA — The Tampa Bay Lightning acquired 24-year-old goalie Dennis Hildeby from the Toronto Maple Leafs in a July 1 trade that sent forward Nick Paul north and brought back the 6-foot-7 Swedish netminder along with a pair of draft picks, giving the franchise a young backup signed at the NHL minimum for the next two seasons.
Lightning general manager and vice president of hockey operations Julien BriseBois said the deal came together quickly once Toronto made Hildeby available. “When we found out he was available we said, ‘Okay, that’s something that’s worth exploring’ because he’s 24 and did really well this year at the NHL level, has a track record of doing really well at the NHL level, has size, has a profile of goaltender that (goalie coach) Frantz Jean really appreciates,” BriseBois said. “We just think he’s ready to be an NHL backup, and then you factor in that he’s only going to get better and he’s on a great contract for the next two years, there’s a lot of value there.”
Hildeby appeared in a career-high 20 games for Toronto last season, posting a 5-7-4 record with a .914 save percentage and 2.86 goals against average — the best marks among all Maple Leafs goalies. The Jarfalla, Sweden, native carries an 8-10-4 career NHL record and .906 career save percentage after also starting six NHL games in 2024-25. “When that season ended, I got a recipe for where I had to improve and I settled in a little more this year,” Hildeby said. “I felt a little calmer, which definitely helped this season.”
Toronto’s fourth-round pick at the 2022 NHL Draft has logged 96 American Hockey League games with a 47-29-16 record and .906 save percentage. He went 10-8-5 in the AHL last season before appearing in three games for the Toronto Marlies during the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs, going 1-1 with a .921 save percentage and 2.17 goals against average. Tampa Bay’s scouts watched his development closely and saw the NHL translation firsthand when Hildeby posted his first career shutout — a 29-save, 2-0 win against the Lightning on Dec. 8. “The first of anything is always memorable and it was a great night, especially against a team like Tampa,” Hildeby said. “You knew going into that game it was going to be very tough. That was super exciting. We played a very good game, and it went my way.”
Hildeby described his playing style as aggressive despite his imposing frame. “My size is something I have very much to my advantage, and it’s something I want to always use to my advantage while still not becoming this back-in goalie. I still want to have an aggressive approach with the mindset of being very big,” he said. The prospect of sharing a locker room with Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy — whom Hildeby called a role model after childhood favorite Henrik Lundqvist retired — was among his first thoughts after learning of the trade. “To meet him, who’s been a big role model for me growing up, that was one of the first things I thought about,” Hildeby said. “Obviously it’s a very successful team with a lot of extremely good players, so it’s easy to be excited.”
Hildeby is currently training in Sweden ahead of his first full NHL campaign. He is signed through the 2027-28 season on an NHL minimum contract and will become a restricted free agent in 2028. “In a new environment I’ll have a lot of new stuff to learn and a lot of new people to meet,” he said. “But when it comes to my game I just want to keep improving and not overcomplicate things here. I want to just keep building where I left off.”